Sholeh Maash - Persian Green Mung Bean and Kohlrabi Hearty Soup

Ever since I saw the recipe for shole maash online in the 19th-century Qajar Women Cookbook, I have been thinking about giving it a try. شله ماش  Sholeh Maash (mung beans with kohlrabi) makes a tasty and nutritious autumn soup. This recipe, like the others in the book, consists of a brief description of what the necessary ingredients are, and the word yek-meghdar (some) is frequently used to describe the amount needed for each ingredient. Persian cuisine is forgiving in terms of measurements, and when you ask a grandmother for a recipe, the answer is basically a list of the ingredients with yek-kami (a little bit) of this and yek-meghdar (some) of that, and that's how I, along with many other Iranians, learned to cook. I learned that you can use a little less or a little more of most ingredients in a recipe, depending on your taste and preferences. A few months into blogging, I bought a food scale to measure the ingredients by weight, but I have rarely used it.

Sholeh maash is not a thin and watery soup. It's a rather rich soup that can be served as a main dish. The original recipe calls for meat, but I've decided that it is substantial enough without the addition of any lamb or beef.

Sholeh Maash - Persian Green Mung Bean and Kohlrabi Hearty Soup

Ingredients:
Serves 6

1 1/2  cups green mung beans, rinse 2-3 times
1/2 cup rice, rinse well
3-4 medium-sized kohlrabi, peel and cut into small cubes, leave one cubed kohlrabi for the topping
1 large bunch of fresh tareh or scallions (green parts only), washed and chopped
1 small bunch of fresh tarragon, stems removed and chopped
Water
Salt and pepper to taste
2 large onions, thinly sliced
2-3 garlic cloves, diced
1/3 teaspoon turmeric
1/3 teaspoon red pepper *optional
1/3 teaspoon cumin *optional
Oil

Method:

1. Place the beans and the rice in a large pot, add 6 cups of water, and bring to a boil on medium-high heat.
2. Add the small pieces of kohlrabi, salt, pepper, cover, and cook for 45 minutes on low heat.
3. Periodically check to see if you need to add more water to the soup.
4. Add the chopped vegetables, taste and adjust the seasoning, add more hot water if needed, and let it simmer for another 15 minutes for the flavors to blend in.
5. In the meantime, fry the sliced onions in 3-4 tablespoons of hot vegetable oil in a skillet until golden brown. Add the turmeric powder and the minced garlic to the oil, stir, and saute further for another five minutes.
6. Add a large tablespoon of the fried onion to the soup and gently mix well.
7. Lightly fry the cubed kohlrabi in 2-3 tablespoons of hot vegetable oil until soft and golden on medium heat. Add a pinch of salt, turmeric, cumin, and red pepper and stir well.

To serve, ladle the soup into a soup bowl, top with the fried onions and kohlrabi. Serve hot with bread and yogurt.

Enjoy!

Kateh - Persian Style Plain and Simple Rice

We're in the final days of summer, and even as I savor every lingering warm evening, I feel a deep sense of gratitude and excitement for the arrival of fall and the start of another school year. The days of holding my daughters' little hands and walking them to the line outside of their classrooms have long since passed, but the memory is as vivid as ever. 

I still remember my eldest daughter's first day of first grade, how she walked into the classroom with such cheerful confidence while I stood there blinking back tears. As I turned and walked away, the realization washed over me: this was the beginning of a long journey into the world, a journey she would eventually take without me holding her hand. 

I have always wanted my girls to be independent, to stand firmly on their own two feet, to roam freely and bravely through life. But the truth is, letting go is never quite as easy as you imagine.

 I remember my own first day of first grade very clearly, but what stands out even more is the night before. In Iran, the school year begins on rooz-e aval-e mehr, the first day of the month of Mehr on the  Persian solar calendar, which also marks the first day of fall, the autumnal equinox on September 23rd.

That year, the night before school started was pure chaos in our home, with three older siblings in high school, another in elementary school, and a newborn baby brother; the house buzzed with noise and movement. Somehow, in all the commotion, as I was getting ready for bed, I realized I had no book bag, no lunch box, and no school uniform for the morning. I went to bed with the butterflies in my stomach, worried and unsure how I would show up for my next day.

But when I woke up,  everything had changed. There beside my pillow sat a brand-new lunchbox, a beautiful new book bag, and a hand-sewn uniform stitched by my mother. I never asked my parents how they managed to pull it all together so late at night. Some moments are too magical to disturb.

 First Grade Lesson, (Persian Alphabet)

کته Kateh is the easiest and quickest way to prepare rice, and it also happens to be the first recipe I learned to cook as a child.  My mother taught each of us how to make kateh when we were young. This simple, no-fuss method involves combining about two parts of water to one part cleaned and rinsed rice in a pot, adding a bit of salt and oil, and letting it gently simmer over low heat. 

I have posted many rice and polow recipes over the years, and except for dami baghali, they all follow the traditional method: bringing a large pot of water to a boil, adding the rice, draining it, and then steaming the parboiled rice with or without other ingredients. Kateh, however, uses the absorption method; nothing is drained, and the rice cooks until the water is fully absorbed. The grains may not turn out as fluffy as a classic polow, but they are more flavorful.

Depending on the type of rice, you may need to adjust the water-to-rice ratio. I prefer basmati rice for its flavor and beautiful aroma, and because it's the closest to the fragrant rice grown in the northern region of Iran. For less sticky, fluffier, and firmer kateh, use 2/3 cups of water for every cup of rice.

There's also the old Persian method of measuring the water for rice by simply covering the rice in the pot until it reaches the first joint of your index finger. with enough water in the pot to reach up to the first joint of your index finger. You can make kateh even more easily by using a rice cooker. But personally, I don't recommend it. There's a special joy in preparing a meal the old-fashioned way: taking the time, the care, and the small effort that turns a simple pot of rice into something meaningful and comforting.

Kateh - Persian Style Plain and Simple Rice

Ingredients

Serves 4

-2 cups dry basmati rice
-4 cups water
-Salt to taste
-butter or vegetable oil

Method:

1. Rinse the rice 2-3 times with cool water or until the water runs clear, and drain well. 
2. Place the rice in a medium pot, add 4 cups of water and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bring to a boil on medium-high heat.
3. Once the water reaches a boil, add 2 tablespoons of oil or butter, depending on your preference, and gently stir once or twice with a wooden spoon.
4. Wrap the lid with a clean dishcloth, cover the pot, and cook on low heat for about 30-40 minutes.

Serve the rice on a platter with yogurt, salad, or your favorite khoresh.

Enjoy! Happy Autumn!